Travelling the world like a local

After being on a road trip in Malawi I put together a list of things you need to know before traveling around Malawi. This amazing country in Southern Africa is a combination of Lake, Wildlife, Landscape, and Culture and what I found is that it’s one of the most amazing travel destinations off the beaten track. Here you can find everything that is important to know in advance before traveling to Malawi:

1. People

I traveled Botswana, Mozambique, Kenya, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Zambiaand South Africa. The people are super friendly everywhere. Malawi is called “The Warm Heart of Africa”. That´s what made my trip in Malawi even more memorable. The people are super easy to approach, hospitable and extremly welcoming. I can just encourage you to mingle with the locals and make friends with them to get to know their culture and traditions. Besides that, you might experience that they introduce themselves with funny names. We ran into Chicken Pizza, Happy Coconut, Planet, Eminem and Sweet Pineapple – just to mention a few.

2. How to get to Malawi

Getting to Malawi by plane can be a bit time-consuming as you need to switch planes quite often. However, it is probably the most convenient way. To find the best flight deals, I can honestly recommend Skyscanner. I always book my flights here:

Another time-consuming way of traveling to Malawi is by bus. There are busses like Inter Cape, Kobs Bus or the local mini busses from Zambia, Tanzania and South Africa going to Malawi.

3. How to get around in Malawi

Public Transport:

Traveling in Malawi by public transport works pretty well. There are busses (Axa Bus, local mini busses) going almost everywhere. The only thing you need is time. To get an idea – it is about $10 to get from Lilongwe to Nkhata Bay (distance: 366 km) and it takes you approximately 7 hours (excluding waiting time).

Ferry:

Another way of getting around in Malawi is the Ilala Ferry. Here you can check the schedule, get the rates and find out how to get in touch with them.

Rental Car:

If you are planning to explore Malawi with a rental car, consider getting a 4 x 4 as some streets are really bumpy. Please also be super careful when driving Malawi during evening hours or during the night as there are many locals walking on the streets and between the towns there is no street light at all.

4. What to see in Malawi

Cape Maclear – Malawi’s version of the Cote d ´Azure at the southern end of Lake Malawi

5. Malawi Information – Internet and SIM Cards

It´s always a good idea to get a SIM card, data and a bit of airtime. I got a card from Vodafone at the airport in Lilongwe but there are also other network providers like Airtel and TNM. You can find cards and top-ups in almost every shop or almost every stand on the street. The quality of reception depends on where you are. I have experienced that there was a better reception in the smaller villages than in the capital Lilongwe.

7. Malawi Travel – Best Travel Time

The best time to travel Malawi is from May to October as it is the drier season. The temperatures are lower, it is not humid at all and mosquitoes are rare. I made my trip in August, which was perfect.

8. Malawi Language – Chichewa

There are 16 listed languages in Malawi. Chichewa is the most widely spoken language in Malawi, mostly in the central and southern regions of the country. It can be understood by almost everyone. To communicate in English is not a problem at all as English is spoken by almost everyone. Here you can find my post and video of “How to speak Chichewa” with a list of phrases and words you might need when traveling Malawi.

(average rate for a bed in a dorm chalet $15/ and an average rate for a chalet or private room is: $ 30)

What I can highly recommend is making friends with thelocals. We got invited to their places and even stayed with them, which was an amazing experience to get to know their culture, life and traditions. If staying with locals is not your thing, you can find the best deals for places to stay here:

10. Toiletries – What to expect

Out of my experience shampoo is really tough to find especially in the small villages and rural areas. In case you can´t find shampoo just do it the way the locals do it and wash your hair with soap. If you have special toiletries you are using I recommend to bring everything you need because it might be a challenge or actually impossible to find a special product.

11. Is Malawi safe to visit

I felt super safe. Walking in the middle of the night, going out for drinks to the local pubs – we never got into a situation where I felt unsafe. Nevertheless, use common sense and remember Malawi is the poorest country in the world. Make sure you don´t display valuables as it might attract people to take chances.

12. Malawi Visa

Most nationalities need a visa to travel Malawi. Some can also get their visa on arrival. Since Germany is part of the countries that can obtain their visa on arrival I got my straight at the airport in Lilongwe. Especially for the airport make sure you have a credit card with you or U.S. dollar to pay for the visa. I paid about $70 dollar. Here you can check how your nationality can obtain a visa for Malawi.

13. Malaria

Yes, Malaria is an issue. Get yourself precaution, spray yourself and get Malaria medicine to take back home with you to be on the safe side. Also please consult your doctor before embarking on your journey to the Warm Heart of Africa.

15. Water Supply

16. Tap Water

I wouldn´t recommend drinking tap water. What I did was drinking water from the boreholes, which they use for the fresh water supply in the rural areas. Anyway, you can find cheap bottled water all over the country.

17. Lake Malawi and Bilharzia

Lake Malawi is the third biggest lake in Africa offering stunningly white, sandy beaches and crystal clear water. While traveling around Malawi, you might want to go for a swim in the Lake but you have one thing you need to consider – Bilharzia. It is a parasitic infection caused by a tiny flatworm. This flatworm appears in parts of Lake Malawi and can cause a severe sickness. Read up on this before you go on your trip to Malawi but please don’t overthink it. You can treat it with pills so please speak to a doctor before or after your trip. The locals usually do all their washing in the lake – especially in the rural areas.

18. Malawi Currency – Money/ ATM´s

The local currency is Malawian Kwacha (MWK) but USD are accepted almost everywhere. One of the best advises I can give is to sort out your money once you are in the bigger cities like Lilongwe, Mzuzu or Blantyre. Especially at Cape MaClear, Kande Beach, and Nkhata Bay, we experienced problems with withdrawing money. Either the ATM´s wouldn’t accept Master Card (only visa), didn´t work, had a daily limit or there was no ATM at all. Also, don´t rely on the cardmachines in the hostels/hotels. They might not always work.

Kenya is on your travel bucket list as well?

19. Malawi Culture – The Malawian Kids

How to get in touch with the locals? The easiest way is through your phone/ camera. The Malawian kids loved being photographed and being recorded on camera. Don´t miss out on taking pictures of them and selfies with them.

20. Party Vibe

No matter what day it is or what time of the day it is, for the Malawians, there is always a reason to party. Don´t miss out on partying in a local nightclub, dancing to African house music and tasting the local beer “Chipoka” and a “green”.

Don´t forget to pin my post:

It stands July 2019

What is important for you to know when traveling to a foreign country? Please let me know in the comments!

Here you can find my video:

Would you like to read and see more about my Africa trips? Here we go!

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About Claudi

Hi, I am Claudi. I am a 35-year-old German traveler & new mom with a passion for adventuring off the beaten track destinations, the local way of traveling and mingling with people from all over the world. In 2015 I quit my job and started my ventures. On this blog I am helping like-minded travelers to discover stunning countries to visit. Read more about Claudi here.